This Tequila Mule (aka Mexican Mule) is a delicious, bright, bubbly, spicy, bold cocktail. With just 3 ingredients - tequila, lime juice, and ginger beer – it's easy to put together and very refreshing.
Ingredients
- Tequila: Blanco / silver is the best tequila for Tequila Mules. Because the drink mixed with the lime juice and ginger beer you don't need anything super fancy or aged (compared to when you're drinking tequila straight). Blanco is agave forward with notes of pepper and citrus, with a spicy finish which is perfect pairing for the spicy ginger beer.
- Lime juice: Please please please use fresh squeezed lime juice!! It really makes all the difference in a cocktail and takes an average drink to the next level.
- Ginger beer: Non-alcoholic ginger beer is standard for mules, but you can always swap in alcoholic if you prefer. The key to picking a ginger beer for this recipe is that you want one that's not too sweet or too spicy - my favorites are Bundaberg and Goslings, but there are so many on the market; if there's one you already love just stick to that.
How to make a tequila mule
Prep: get your copper mug and fill it about ¾ of the way with ice.
I used a clear glass to show the steps.
1. Squeeze the juice out of your lime and add to your glass.
2. Add your tequila.
3. Top with ginger beer and give it a quick stir.
Tips and tricks
- Make it spicy: If you want a little more kick of spice beyond the tang of the ginger beer, add a jalapeño to make it a spicy tequila mule.
- There are a few ways you can do this - you can add a slice to the tequila for about 30 mins - 1 hour before making the drink, you can muddle a slice at the bottom of your glass as you make the drink, or you can simply top your drink for the least amount of heat.
- Make it smoky: To make a smoky tequila mule - use mezcal!
- Make it a little sweet: Add a drop of agave and stir it in. You can also use a bit of simple syrup. Doing either of these will cut through a little bit of the spice of the ginger beer. If you like the spice/sweet combo you can also try this spicy watermelon margarita.
- Garnish: If you want to add a garnish, i'd recommend either some lime slices and/or some sprigs of fresh mint.
- Non alcoholic: If you want to make this drink non-alcoholic, use club soda/seltzer in place of the tequila. Maybe even try a lime flavored seltzer to punch up the lime flavor a bit!
FAQs
Copper mugs are thermal conductors - so they mirror the temperature of what's inside of them. So in this instance, the mug gets really nice and chilled, which keeps your drink cool. More on this here.
Absolutely not. Any regular cup will be just fine, but if you have copper mugs now is the time to use them.
The difference between these two drinks is the type of alcohol. A Moscow mule uses vodka, whereas a Mexican mule uses tequila.
I'd actually recommend away from a cocktail shaker for this one - the ginger beer is carbonated which will create a fizzy mess in a cocktail shaker.
If you want to prep ahead of time, I'd recommend only doing so for the tequila and lime juice. If you add the ginger beer too soon it'll lose its carbonation.
Sure can! Just double/triple/quadruple the ingredients as necessary. But only add the ginger beer right before serving.
I wouldn't go as far as to say it's good for you, but it does have a few benefits. Ginger itself (not necessarily ginger beer) has been used to combat nausea, and may help reduce inflammation. More details here.
In this instance, I would really urge you to use ginger beer! Ginger ale has a much milder flavor and is much sweeter. If that's something you think you may prefer then try it, but it won't have the same zing.
Recipe
Tequila Mule
INGREDIENTS
- 1.5 oz blanco tequila
- 1 oz lime juice
- 6 oz ginger beer
INSTRUCTIONS
- Get a copper mug (or glass!) and fill it ¾ of the way with ice.
- Squeeze the juice out of your lime and add to your glass.
- Then add your tequila.
- Finish by topping with ginger beer and give it a quick stir. Enjoy right away!
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